This property has a documented history as a gasoline service station going back to 1989. Historical insurance policies issued during those prior operations and through 1986 could help fund the ongoing cleanup and groundwater monitoring obligations that Wisconsin DNR continues to oversee.
This property has operated as a gasoline service station since at least 1989, with underground storage tanks that were almost certainly installed before 1986 based on documented tank lifecycles. A prior LUST case opened in 1993 required remedial excavation extending eighteen feet deep across most of the site to address long-term petroleum contamination, including leaded gasoline, and that case closed in 2002 with continuing obligations for residual soil and groundwater contamination. A current Phase II Environmental Site Assessment (April 2025) has revealed severe groundwater contamination, with benzene concentrations ranging from 1,310 to 3,300 µg/L — hundreds of times above the NR 140 enforcement standard of 5 µg/L — and the prior case documented contamination migration into a public right-of-way. That history could support an insurance coverage claim against the carriers who issued policies more than 40 years ago — coverage that could help fund the cleanup ahead.
Why Historical Insurance Policies May Be Accessible
Pre-1986 Commercial General Liability (CGL) policies were occurrence-based and did not contain an effective pollution exclusion in Wisconsin — and those policies may provide coverage that remains enforceable today. If contamination occurred while those policies were active, those historical insurance carriers may still have a legal obligation to fund the cleanup costs, even if the business closed or the property changed hands.
Underground storage tanks at this property were installed and petroleum dispensing operations were underway well before 1986, as confirmed by a LUST case opened in 1993 that documented long-term contamination from leaded gasoline and required remedial excavation extending eighteen feet deep across most of the site. The substantial future costs now facing this property — including further investigation and remediation of groundwater contamination confirmed at hundreds of times above NR 140 enforcement standards, cleanup of contamination that has migrated into the public right-of-way, and long-term monitoring of residual soil and groundwater contamination under the WDNR's Environmental Remediation Program — are costs that historical pre-1986 carriers insuring the businesses that operated here may be obligated to fund.
Restorical's role is to locate viable historical policies, determine whether a successful coverage claim is possible, and assist our clients and their legal counsel to obtain insurance coverage. Restorical then manages the claim, including accounting, to ensure the cleanup is funded in a timely manner.
What We Look For
- Historical insurance policies (pre-1986)
- Policy numbers, carrier names, and coverage periods
- Connection between contamination timing and policy period
- Evidence linking cleanup obligation to insured activity
What We Deliver
- Historical Coverage Chart
- Trigger Analysis & Property/Policy Nexus
- Coverage strategy with recommendations
- Insurance funding for your remediation
- Claims Management
The Restorical Proven Process
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Contact UsThis analysis is preliminary and based on publicly available records. Restorical Research is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.